[Verse 1]
When we all ran back into the briars
We told our children 'bout the foreign shore
When we threw our boots into the fire
We told 'em all about the tug of war

Wanna tell 'em 'bout the seed and the shovel
About the prison and the promised land
Gonna tell 'em 'bout the dream of the devil
About the hurtin' and the healin' hand, that hand

[Chorus]
'Cause the music never lasts too long
For the singers and the endless song

[Verse 2]
When we heard our words up in the mirror
We told our children how to hold their tongues
When we held our heads beneath the river
We told 'em all about the iron lung

Gonna tell 'em 'bout the sins of the father
'Bout the junkie and the jubilee
Gonna tell 'em 'bout the roots in the water
About the killin' in the quiet night of trees
[Chorus]
'Cause the music never lasts too long
For the singers and the endless song

[Verse 3]
All the morning kisses in the covers
They told our children what were their means
Until you wrapped your arms around another
And told 'em love was worth a pile of beans

Gonna tell em 'bout the call of the ocean
'Bout the singers and the endless song
Gonna tell em 'bout the body and the motion
And how the music never lasts too long, too long

[Chorus Outro]
'Cause the music never lasts too long
For the singers and the endless song
('Bout the low-lit alley and the wedding band)
('Bout the first-born sucker in the spider's web)

'Cause the music never lasts too long
For the singers and the endless song
('Bout the mind and the muscle and the weary mouth)
(And the heart and the hustle and the empty sky)
'Cause the music never lasts too long
For the singers and the endless song
(Tangle of truth and the perfect team)
('Bout the pyramid of truth and each other mean)

'Cause the music never lasts too long
For the singers and the endless song
('Bout the butterfly kiss and the call for blood)
('Bout the peak in the picture and the holy mud)

'Cause the music never lasts too long
For the singers and the endless song
('Bout the bees in the summer and the lonely road)
('Bout to stay through the window when I'm going on)

'Cause the music never lasts too long
For the singers and the endless song

'Cause the music never lasts too long
For the singers and the endless song